Article for simulating animation



May 20, 1947. A. T. SMITH ARTICLE FOR SIMULATING ANIMATION Filed May 7, 1945 s Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. M YBY ATTOAJ'NEX A. T. SMITH ARTICLE FOR SIMULATING ANIMATION May 20, i947. 2,420,986

5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 7, 1945 B I INVENTOR.

May 20, 1947.

A. T. SMITH ARTICLE FOR SIMULATING' ANIMATION I Filed May 7, 1945 5 Sheets$heet 3 INVENTOR. W J M ATTOR/Vfy Patented May 20, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to articles in the form of card structures which may be manipulated to produce simulation of animation and it resides more specifically in a single continuous card having a specialized fold or hinge dividing the same into a portion which may be gripped at its side edges between the fingers to cause it to arch and a free movable portion which may flex to cover the gripped portion, the hinge being specialized in that it comprises a central easily flexed main hinge zone flanked by more difficultly flexed resilient hinge zones at the card edges so that upon arching of the gripped portion the hinging of the resilient hinge zones lags behind the hinging of the main hinge zone to produce a couple which produces a closing motion in the free movable portion of the card, the two faces of the card being formed to display symbols or pictorial representations which are related but modified with respect to one another, so that an animation thereof may be simulated by arching the gripped portion to cause the free portion to close and open.

Heretofore numerous forms of card or paper displays, arranged for hand manipulation to produce simulation of animation have been proposed. In all of these a very perceptible motion of the hands has been necessary for their operation thus detracting markedly from the illusion sought to be produced. With the display of this invention a very marked alteration of the positions of the parts is caused to take place by a barely perceptible motion of the manipulators hand and. the actuation may be easily caused to take place with such rapidity as to occur within the limits of persistence of Vision. As a result, an animation quite impressive to the observer may be simulated with the display of this invention in a manner and to a degree not exhibited by articles of this class heretofore proposed.

This invention is herein described by reference to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof in which there is set forth by way of illustration and not of limitation certain forms in which the article of this invention may be embodied.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front view of one form of the article of this invention in open position;

Fig. 2 is a rear view of the article shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the article shown in Fig. 1 displayed in relation to a manipulating hand and in open position;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the article shown in Fig. 1 displayed in relation to a manipulating hand and in closed position;

Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the article shown in Fig. 1 in the position shown in Fig. 4 illustrating the presence of finger clearance;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged detailed fragmentary side view in elevation of the hinge of the article shown in Fig. 1 in partly closed position;

Fig. 7 is a perspective diagram of an article of this invention in partly closed position to more clearly illustrate the hinge structure;

Fig. 8 is a front view in open'position of an article of this invention adapted for use as an educational appliance; and

Fig. 9 is a front View in closed position of the article shown in Fig. 8.

Referring now to the drawings there is shown in Figs. 1 to 7 a form of the article of this invention adapted for use as an amusement device. As appears in the several figures the an I ticle is made up of a rectangular piece of relatively thin but resilient card stock orstiff paper, divided by a hinge line i into a grip portion 2 and a free movable portion 3. The hinge I is formed by a series of closely spaced perforations which extend in a transverse direction and terminate short of the margins of the card leaving two areas c and 5, which are free of perforations.

As shown in Fig. 1 the face of the card carries a symbol system in the form of a pictorial representation 6 showing two persons seated at opposite ends of a sofa. The reverse face of the card and within the boundaries of the free movable portion 3 carries a related symbol system 1 in the form of a pictorial representation of one of the persons appearing in the symbol system 6 in modified posture.

In use the card shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is first flexed and creased along the hinge line I to substantially the position shown in Fig. 4. In doing so the perforated portion of the hinge i being weak offers little resistance to creasing while the unperforated portions 4 and 5, retaining the natural resiliency of the card are flexed but not weakened so that in its normal unstressed condition the card assumes substantially the position appearing in Fig. 3. If the side edges of the grip portion 2 are then grasped between the fingers, for example, as illustrated in Fig. 3 and pressure is applied as indicated by the arrows B-B in Fig. l, the free movable portion 3 will begin to move and then suddenly close with great rapidity to the position shown in Fig. 4. If the pressure between the fingers is then released as indicated by the arrows AA in Fig. 3, the free movable portion 3 will move under the resilient action of the zones 5 and 5 to the position shown in Fig. 3.

The closing and opening motion of the article above described, and particularly the closing motion thereof, takes place with great rapidity and with a relatively small amount of movement on the part of the operators fingers. As more clearly illustrated in Figs. 6 and '7, the closing movement is brought about by reason of a lagging in the creasing of the zones 3 and 5 which takes place when the grip portion 2 is subjected to arching under the pressure applied by the operators fingers. As arching of the grip portion 2 proceeds, a thrust is applied through the main hinge portion I to the movable portion 3, as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 6. At the same time the margins of the zones 4 and 5 exert a pulling action as indicated by the arrow D in Fig. 6. These forces being spaced from one another produce a couple which causes the free movable portion 3 to move toward a closed position. As soon as the free movable portion 3 has moved to a point where it forms less than a right angle with the grip portion 2, the inclination of the movable portion 3 to conform to the arched configuration of the g ip portion 2 then comes into play to cause a very rapid completion of the closing movement.

When in closed position, the parts conform roughly to the configuration illustrated in Fig. 5 where it may be seen that the grip portion 2 is arched more completely than the free movable portion 3. But by reason of this, ample clearance for the operators fingers which engage the edges of the grip portion 2 is provided, even though the parts 2 and 3 seem to be substantially co-planar as illustrated in Fig. 4. In order to guide the operators fingers to the proper location it is desirable to form indentations 8 and 9 in the margins oi the grip portion 2 or such locations may be indicated by means other than indentations, if desired.

In the particular form of the article of this invention which is illustrated in Figs. 1 to 7, inclusive, the same is arranged to afford amusement using two related but modified pictorial representations for this purpose. It is possible, however, as illustrated in Figs. 8 and 9 to adapt the article of this invention to other uses as, for example, an educational use. In this instance a grip portion Ii! is divided from a free movable portion l l by a hinge :2. On the face of the grip portion i0 is displayed an uncompleted trigonometric equation. On the reverse of the movabe portion H is displayed a related symbol system which modifies 0r completes the incomplete trigonometric equation displayed on the face of the grip portion iii.

In order to produce the central hinge portion, such as is shown at l and at I2, ordinary spaced perforations are preferably employed. Other methods of weakening the card material for this purpose, however, may be employed, such, for example, as very severe pre-creasing of the card or by scoring or partially cutting through the material of the card.

I claim:

1. In an action display the combination comprising a single continuous card-like sheet member having a width easily spanned by the fingers of a hand, a transverse intermediate line of weakness in said sheet member traversing less than the width thereof and terminating short of its side margins adapted to provide a central easily hinged zone terminating in resilient normally unflexed more difiicultly hinged zones at each end thereof adjacent the side edges of said sheet member, said line of weakness serving to divide said sheet member into a grip portion adapted to be held at its side edges between the fingers and arched under compression applied thereby and a free portion adapted for flexing movement toward and away from said grip portion and compelled thereto by alteration of the degree of arching of said grip portion, whereby said freeportion may be caused to move rapidly to cover said grip portion upon application of arching pressure to said grip portion and to move to expose said grip portion on release of said arching pressure.

2. In an action display the combination comprising a card-like sheet member having a width easily spanned by the fingers of a hand, a transverse intermediate line of weakness in said sheet member traversing less than the width thereof and terminating short of its side margins adapted to provide a central easily hinged zone terminating in resilient normally unfiexed more difiicultly hinged zones at each end thereof adjacent the side edges of said sheet member, said line of weakness serving to divide said sheet member into a grip portion adapted to be held at its side edges between the fingers and arched under compression applied thereby and a free portion adapted for flexing movement toward and away from said grip portion and compelled thereto by alteration of the degree of arching of said grip portion, and finger seat indentations in the margins of said grip portion close to said hinged zone.

3. In a card display for simulation of animation of a symbol system the combination comprising a single continuous card-like sheet member having a width easily spanned by the fingers of a hand, a transverse intermediate line of weakness in said sheet member adapted to form a hinge-line predisposed toward formation of a central primary hinging zone in advance of and flanked by marginal secondary hinging zones, said line of weakness serving to divide said sheet member into a grip portion adapted to be held at its side edges between the fingers and arched under compression applied thereby and a free portion adapted for flexing movement toward and away from said grip portion and compelled thereto by alteration of the degree of arching of said grip portion, an initial symbol system secured to and displayed on the face of said sheet member, and a related symbol system in modified form secured to and displayed on the reverse side of the free portion of said sheet member, whereby said modified symbol may be caused to move rapidly to cover and modify said initial symbol system upon application of arching pressure to said grip portion and to move to expose said initial symbol system on release of said arching pressure.

4. In a card display for simulation of animation of a symbol system the combination comprising a single continuous card-like sheet memher having a width easiy spanned by the fingers of a hand, a transverse intermediate line of weakness in said sheet member adapted to form a hange-line, said line of weakness serving to divide said sheet member into a grip portion adapted to be held at its side edges between the fingers and arched under compression applied thereby and a free portion adapted for flexing movement toward and away from said grip portion and compelled thereto by alteration of the degree of arching of said grip portion, an initial symbol system secured to and displayed on the face of said sheet member, and a related symbol system in modified form secured to and displayed on the reverse side of the free portion of said sheet member, whereby said modified symbol may be caused to move rapidly to cover and modify said initial symbol system upon application of arching pressure to said grip portion and to move to expose said initial symbol system on release of said arching pressure.

ALVA '1'. SMITH. 

